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I thought I would expand the subject a little – it comes from my Facebook post and relates to – a title no longer used but close to my heart – that is The Open winner being known as “The Champion Golfer of The World, if you are interested please read on:-The one and only tournament that gives its winner the right to be called “The Champion Golfer of The World” will soon be played at Carnoustie between the 15th & 22nd July this year.

The 147th Open – know by golfers as “The Open” will be played upon a course that can test each and every player. It will present the winner with the right to be known as The Champion Golf of The World” , now that is a marketing tool that many an organisation would kill to have the right to use for their merchandising campaign. It would pull in those players who did not consider it a great Tournament – well in the money stakes anyway – however to be know as the Golfing World Champion, which golfer in their right mind would prefer that accolade over money.

So why does the R&A in their normal wisdom reject this out of hand and believe that by changing the name on a golf shop from Tom Morris Golf Shop to The Open be seen as more worthwhile. Do they believe that having insulted the father of the modern game of Golf, they would attract more to visit their shop, has The Open more pulling power than the name and history of Tom Morris, noting that he and his son Young Tommy won The Open 8 times between them.

The Open is coming to Carnoustie, that is to be celebrated, its just a pity that the R&A don’t have the balls to openly call the winner The Champion Golf of The World, after all they and the Links Trust want to make money out of The Open so what better way, change a shop name to Open or call the winner The world Champion – let me tell you their choice – its to remove Tom Morris name over his shop and re title it The Open.

This yet again proves to the golfing world just how screwed up the R&A are and have been for some considerable time. Its as if they do not know what they are doing, they don’t seem to understand golf, clearly very little when it comes to golf course design and as for running The Open – just what a wasted marketing opportunity they are throwing away – still I am told that they are keen on the Tom Morris Legacy, but refuse to celebrate the centenary of his death in 2008, they have destroyed Old Tom’s old house behind the shop, they has insulted the legacy and the name of Old Tom by removing his name from the oldest golfing shop in the world and called it The Open – and that’s before we start on the golf – the distance issues, the constant meddling in course design selected for The Open and so many more golfing issues that they seem frightened to resolve.

Perhaps some of you might now see why I keep calling for their either reform or removal as the governing Body of Golf.

15th – 22nd July will see Carnoustie holding ‘The Open’ attracting some of the best golfers in the world, but not all – then if the title ‘The Champion Golfer of The World’ was used in conjunction with the Claret Jug then I would expect all the great golfer of the world to attend. As for provenance for the title ‘The Champion Golf of The World’ we could start with the Prestwick minutes of 1861 when it states that championship is open to the world; then the many newspaper reports from the 1860’s through to the late 1920’s. – then again the best provenance for that title is with The Open itself, being the fist and continuous golfing championship in the world, some 34 years before any other continuous major came into being.

The R&A willing screw the name of Tom Morris into the ground to market The Open yet refuse to address yet another issue, that of calling The Open winner The Champion Golfer of The World – proving to me that they are intent in destroying the name of Tom Morris or my God they are totally incompetent of being in charge of a paper bag let along The Royal & Ancient Game of Golf.

I trust that I will have your continued support in boycotting and blacklisting the Shop now known as The Open in St Andrews and all other R&A and Links Trust merchandising outlets.

In support of my claim regards the title being used I offer up three article spanning some 60 years – starting with The Scotsman newspaper dated Thursday 16th September 1869 titled ‘Golf Autumn meeting of The Prestwick Golf Club’ which reads “1867 saw Tom Morris champion golfer of the world for the fourth time, and “Young Tom” in 1868, following in the footsteps of his celebrated father, won the champion belt. Then the Dundee Evening Post dated Tuesday 16th October 1900 , well I attach part of this article as it states it in a way that defines that winning The Open makes you the Champion Golfer of The World. And last The York Evening Post dated 28th June 1913, again I attach this article.

Sorry not able to add the two short articles. but see if I can write one of them down for you – “A claim is being made on behalf of Vardon that, as he beat Taylor at Chicago, the latter cannot now be termed world’s golf champion, and a proposal is out to match the pair over four first-class greens to settle their little difficulty. Any number of matches won over Taylor by Vardon would not abrogate Taylor’s world-wide title. He won his championship not only at the meeting always associated with an open challenge to the world, but he won it on the world’s championship course. and under the direct auspices of the club whose golf laws have the world’s obedience. Taylor does not bear the limited title of American golf champion, but he is indubitably world’s golf champion, and will so be until deprived of the title at an open championship meeting.“